Jamais Jochim
Bio
I'm the guy who knows every last fact about Spider-man and if I don't I'll track it down. I love bad movies, enjoy table-top gaming, and probably would drive you crazy if you weren't ready for it.
Stories (246)
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Creating the Perfect Work Environment
Artists are a really weird bunch if for no other reason than each one of us has our preferred work environment. This is a spectrum ranging from nice and quiet, no distractions, all the way up to, well, let's just say some of us require a certain level of chaos in our environment. Everyone has a different situation they've gotten used to because of how they're raised or just because of the stuff that happened around them. I grew up in a very active household so if I don't have a certain level of chaos going around me it tends to drive me to distraction to the point where I simply can't do anything. I need some stimulation, even if it's just strapping on headphones and putting on some Viking metal.
By Jamais Jochim11 months ago in Writers
Racism Isn't Always a Good Option for Evil
Friends, rivals, or enemies: They all work. [August de Richelieu (Pexels.com)]A lot of writers include some level of racism in their writing, and this may be a problem. Racism represents an easy conflict. It's like bullies in a high school story: It allows us to abuse our protagonists while showing who the bad guys are. Since racism is such an obvious evil, it allows writers to show the line between good and evil while giving the good guys a little sympathy. By showing someone is a racist, we very quickly show the reader who to root for and who to hiss at, making it a good choice for anyone. But there are some issues to consider.
By Jamais Jochim11 months ago in Writers
Team Design Part 1
No character ever operates alone. Even a solo character has a support staff of some sort; Batman may say he operates alone, but he has someone to look over his mansion (Alfred Pennyworth), someone to handle his business (Lucius Fox), someone to spar with (name a Robin), and a lifelong friend (Clark Kent). When you start dealing with actual teams, that connection becomes even more apparent.
By Jamais Jochim11 months ago in Writers
Team Building Part 3
Tactical Build For those who want to try something a little different, there's the tactical build. This team is built more in line with the characters' roles in the group, i.e., what they do rather than how they affect the drama. This is also more familiar to first-person shooter players and allows the writer to shift the dramatic roles around as needed rather than keeping them somewhat static (that is, anyone can be a leader, for example). In this case, the roles are:
By Jamais Jochim11 months ago in Writers
Filling in the Plot Holes
So your editor emails you and points out that the scene you thought was really cool has a number of problems: The weapon in use just doesn't do that. The character you used to shoot the villain has been established to have nothing to shoot him with. And it's in a country that makes no sense for the heroes to have traveled that quickly. And why did the princess that you've taken pains to establish as a pacifist charge into battle with a Viking battle ax, a culture you established doesn't exist?
By Jamais Jochim11 months ago in Writers
The Sometimes Necessity of the Mary Sue
One of the more problematic character types is the "Mary Sue". This is the protagonist who seems to be able to do just about everything, has mastered most of the important skills of the story, has one or two unique abilities only she has access to, and whose flaws are relatively minor. The standard anime schoolgirl is the typical Mary Sue; she is getting mostly high marks, is incredibly pretty, is the best fighter, and is able to educate her teachers. If she has a crush, he is the best possible boy and has a crush on her. However, as boring as this character may seem, she does have some use.
By Jamais Jochim11 months ago in Writers
Cliche Characters to Avoid
Cliches are one of the most dreaded parts of being a writer because there's no real way to avoid using them. There are numerous ways to avoid using them, but a more effective method is to embrace them while trying to work with them to create some sort of unique character. Obviously, this is fraught with its own challenges, but it's something you need to attempt anyway.
By Jamais Jochim11 months ago in Writers
My Top Ten Writing Tips
Every writer has their own method to their madness. Here are some ideas you can add to your own. 10) Take acting classes. The classes will teach you to get under the skin of the characters you write, a valuable skill when it comes to writing a character. You also need to learn to swiftly shift between characters (this will especially make dialogue easier to write), and if you have a deeper understanding of your characters you can not only make those sudden shifts, but it helps you keep them straight as well as avoid out-of-character moments. It may even help you solve problems as they come up.
By Jamais Jochim11 months ago in Writers
Which Pigeonhole is Yours?
Too many think that a genre is "limiting." A genre serves a very useful purpose: It's Marketing 101. People are looking for more of what they love; after a while, they realize that they like particular types of stories while disliking other types; genres help them look for those stories they are looking for more of while helping sort out the others. Because of this, it helps to define your story as belonging to a particular genre; it helps people who may be interested in what you have to say find you that much easier.
By Jamais Jochim11 months ago in Writers
Why Your Magic Needs Rules
Don't you hate it when you're reading a story about mages and you're trying to figure out why they don't just use magic to get out of a problem? The apprentice has cast a fireball, used telekinesis to grab keys while in a cell, and took advantage of psychometry to get a clue from the killer's hammer, but then has a problem opening a door; while it's a nice nod to Vox Machina, it brings up a lot of questions about how your magic system works.
By Jamais Jochim11 months ago in Writers
